I got this setup as a quiver killer. Ive always had a lot of boards and I usually bring 2 to the hill in case 1 breaks or I feel like doing different things on the hill. Conditions I’ve ridden with it are pretty much everything but bottomless pow and death cookies. I weigh about 200 lbs. I usually ride anything from a 155 to a 166. I ride 75% in the glades. The tighter the better.

My opinions:
First off the bindings: They are what I would call a light mid stiff binding. About a half notch softer than middle of the road. They are super comfy and I really like the added benefit of the canted footbeds. It really seems to keep me centered over the board better and reduces fatigue. Only drawback is I find the canted footbeds take away a little of my ability to do presses. I can however seem to get a little more pop out of the board with them. In case you were wondering yes I have ridden a SL with regular bindings (Rome 390) The auto setup is a little but weird and was much slower than a normal binding to get in and out of for my first couple runs. By the beginning of my 2nd day on them however I would say that I am about the same as a normal binding but as I get better with them I see them just getting easier and faster to deal with. Forward lean adjustment is a little weird but once its setup it has no real possibility of ever moving and it saves clutter on the highback. Overall I was very impressed with these. Never ridden K2 before but I like them.

Board:
This board does everything well. As long as there is snow in the trees that is where you will find me. In the woods you can find every snow surface imaginable other than manmade groomer crud and death cookies. The SL deals with all of them well. It is great having a board that I can ride with no real setback to give me the most control on hardpack and ice. The board rides loose edge to edge because of the rocker between the feet so it turns like a 155 but it still rides like the 161 that it is when you dig in your edge. The benefits of a short board and a long board. Really is great. The rocker also allows it to float incredibly well without having to move the bindings back. Ive only been in fresh that is about 20” at its best so I haven’t tested in in the bottomless pow but I have pow boards for that. I wanted something that can handle searching for some freshies after the snow is showing some signs of use and this board excels at that. Tight trees mean low to mid speeds weather its steep or not. For high speeds look for a little stiffer of a board.

Rating for different conditions
Windblown ice & hardpack to get to the glades: B not amazing but it does it well.
Bumped up chop & crud beat up tracked up snow: A- turns fast enough to avoid the nastiest bits and damp enough to deal with what you do hit just not for missleing through it
Tracked trees: A+ great going from tracks to fresh just eats it all up regardless of whats under you
Freshies: A+ A foot and a half of fresh snow and this board just comes alive. Floats easy, turns fast and loves to slash the snow and pop off little rollers. Deeper and you would be better off on a pintail but this thing would have no real trouble unless you had sized down.
Park: A My park is rollers, rocks, cliffs & trees and this board will eat up anything. I avoid manmade parks because big air to icy landings is just a stupid idea. It deals with natural features very well. The rocker makes it very forgiving.
Groomer Cruising: A- If you like to go mach 12 then this isnt the board for you. If you like to just cruise around and maybe go a little slower and play around then its great. Real forgiving, loose, and playful.

Well I have quite a few more days on this board now and I still really hold my initial opinion. This is the best jack of all trades board I have owned. I have done some serious steep and gnarly lines and it holds up to them just fine. I have never worried about it being able to hold its edge anywhere. Done a little bit of time on some boxes and it locks right in just fine. I have done a few log rides and it slides real well on those too. Sunday I did run down a steep skied off black trail at the highest speed I have ever been on a snowboard and that didn't even really upset the board.
Now for the bad. I got my first core shot sunday. I think I know which hit did it and I am rather unimpressed with the base. It is just a small one but I know that a smokin board would not have the level of damage that this board got. Any of the Burton or Nitro boards Ive been on however would have taken it much much worse. I do realize that this is a real hard thing to compare because no 2 hits to the base are the same but Ive abused the heck out of a smokin on much much worse terrain in october with less damage to the board.

Great review! That core shot is interesting. I'll be learning how to jib on the Proto probably so we'll see.

Glad you like the K2's. Harshmellow is great isn't it?

I find it interesting that canted footbeds decrease your pressing ability. I feel that it helps mine. Do you use the lean or lift method? I think I can see how it hampers presses if you use the lift method.

I use mostly the lean method. I think anyway. Never really thought about it I just do it. After a little more time I think it makes my presses more in control but not as exaggerated. My nose press is now just gets the tail a couple inches of the ground but I find I can steer and hold the sweet spot a lot better.

I really do like those bindings. They seem to really help with fatigue. Tight woods are exhausting and being able to sneak in a few extra turns before your legs get destroyed is very helpful.

My core shot was actually not jibbing something it was just from going somewhere that snow doesn't stick as well as I would like it too.
I was somewhere along the top ridge here

Completely forgot about what we were talking about. That pic looks tasty. Why can't I live by something like that?

Yea, I don't jib either. I'm going to learn though. Stuck my first wide box last week. Had big problems with riding completely flat since I usually pressure an edge when riding and flat base momentarily.

Was just thinking a rail might do more harm if you got your core shot from mild riding (mild by your standards).